A review of the Gran Habano VL Gran Churchill and the Macanudo 1968 Robusto 

Gran Habano VL Gran Churchill

Gran Habano is a cigar company that, despite its relatively limited history, has already made an impact on the cigar world.  Founded in 1995 by the father and son tandem of Guillermo and George Rico, Gran Habano made a name for itself most notably with its Gran Habano 3 Siglos Gran Corona which was good enough to reach Cigar Aficionado’s top 25 list for 2007.  You could say that cigars run in the family’s blood, as the elder Guillermo is a third generation leaf grower.  Without a doubt this helps to add extra love and care into the whole manufacturing process.  Gran Habano owns factories in Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua.  To help ensure that consumers don’t and duds, Gran Habano has a quality control factory that uses the latest technology to inspect each and every cigar to remain consistency in construction.

VL Gran Churchill is a limited edition cigar from Gran Habano of which only 250,000 are said to have been produced.  The VL in the cigar’s name stands for “Very Limited”, in case you were wondering.  It’s a full-bodied cigar that measures 7x50.  The filler is a combination of strong Cuban-seed Nicaraguan tobacco and tobacco from Costa Rica.  The binder comes from the Dominican Republic and it has a Nicaraguan Corojo wrapper that has been aged for five years.  The cigar is finished off with a triple cap and to note its limited production, each cigar is individually numbered.

The presentation of the Gran Habano VL Gran Churchill is very nice, and you can tell that a lot of thought went into the design.  Each cigar is packed with a sweet-smelling cedar sheath that covers most of the body with Gran Habano VL in silver print.  An elegant white, blue, and silver band near the head shows the Gran Habano logo and company name.  Right beneath it is a second band in blue and silver with VL in large lettering to let remind you that it is “very limited.”  The actual cigar has an oily sheen to it with several veins, and it is not the most firmly-packed cigar out there.  A cold taste gives off a sweet flavor and it also has a sweet scent.